Social Studies/History - Biographies

About Famous People
http://www.aboutfamouspeople.com/
This site has a great collection of information on famous women throughout history. From First Ladies to Spies, you’ll find it all here, not to mention famous men as well. Get information on the Presidents, and their first ladies, homes and monuments that were erected to honor famous people, and what days of the year are dedicated to famous men and women around the globe.

Academy of Achievement
http://www.achievement.org/
The American Academy of Achievement salutes nearly 90 men and women whose accomplishments, in the academy's view, helped shape the 20th century. The honorees are divided into five different categories, each of which has its own hall within the academy. Included are halls of arts, business, public service, sports, and science and exploration.

Amelia Earhart Biography
http://www.ellensplace.net/eae_intr.html
Amelia Earhart crossed the Atlanctic on May 20, 1932. This detailed biography, neatly organized into Early Years, Celebrity, and Last Flight, is a terrific resource for school reports.

Arts Alive: George Gershwin
http://www.artsalive.ca/en/mus/greatcomposers/gershwin.html
This site from the National Arts Centre of Canada provides a biography on the life and music of George Gershwin (1898-1937 CE). Content includes information on the early life of Gershwin and his job at Remick's, his breakthrough into songwriting, his most famous compositions, and his tragic death.

Benjamin Franklin: Documentary History
http://www.english.udel.edu/lemay/franklin/
Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts, and he has not been forgotten. He was a prolific writer as well as a printer, scientist, inventor, statesman, philosopher, musician, and economist.
Created by Professor Leo Lemay of the University of Delaware as background research for a Franklin biography, this year-by-year time line of Franklin's life would fill seven volumes if published on paper. You can wander through the years on your own, discovering tidbits of interesting information along the way, or use the terrific search engine found in the Introduction.

Biographies for Kids: Famous Leaders for Young Readers
http://gardenofpraise.com/leaders.htm
"These stories of presidents, inventors, educators, scientists, business men and women etc. are presented to inspire the student to follow their examples of courage, determination, honesty and willingness to work." Each of these easy-reader biographies includes a printable word search, crossword puzzle, study sheet with important facts to know, and a worksheet with open-ended questions to answer.

Biography Center
http://www.biography-center.com/

Biography of America
http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/
A Biography of America features 27 periods in American history, including such topics as westward expansion, slavery, and the Sixties. Each period contains resources about key events, maps, a transcript of the original TV program and a Webography of additional online resources. Each section also includes a featured, interactive resource that complements the other four components of the section.

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage
http://www.gale.com/free_resources/chh/
Read biographies of 50 Hispanic men and women, learn about hispanic music and explore a timeline covering 500 years.

Daguerreotypes by Augustus Washington, A Durable Memento
http://www.npg.si.edu/exh/awash/index.htm
Augustus Washington, son of a former slave, learned to make daguerreotypes in 1843 during his freshman year at Dartmouth College to offset his college expenses. Biographical notes and details about his work are provided in an annotated slideshow, which includes portraits he made in his first studio at Hartford, Connecticut, and those he made later after he had migrated to Liberia. This is a fascinating history of the life of an African American living free in a slave society. The site, the online version of an exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery, offers a Teachers Guide in PDF format.

George Gershwin
http://www.artsalive.ca/en/mus/greatcomposers/gershwin.html
This site from the National Arts Centre of Canada provides a nice biography on the life and music of George Gershwin. Content includes information on the early life of Gershwin and his first job in New York's "Tin Pan Alley," his breakthrough into songwriting, his most famous compositions, and his tragic death at 39.

Helen Keller Biography
http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=1&TopicID=129
Helen Keller worked for The American Foundation for the Blind from 1924 until her death in June, 1968. Although this autobiography page lacks illustration, it is an excellent resource for school reports. Click on links on the right edge for pictures, writings, and books by Helen Keller.

John Glenn Archives
http://library.osu.edu/sites/archives/glenn/glennchrono.php
Ohio State University offers a chronology of John Glenn from his birth in 1921 to the present, including important events from his early spaceflights, his political career, and his return to space on board the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1998.

Knowing Poe
http://knowingpoe.thinkport.org/default_flash.asp
This is an excellent Website for anyone interested in researching the life and writing of Edgar Allan Poe. It provides detailed biographical information, primary texts, and video clips. The interactive section on Poe's "Poetic Principle" is especially helpful in understanding Poe's writing.

Kofi Annan, Center of the Storm
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/un/
The companion piece to the PBS documentary on Kofi Annan, this site is also an excellent source of on-line information about the Secretary General of the United Nations and about the U.N. itself. Find a Life Map of Annan, information on his quest for peace, and classroom activities on the work of the United Nations.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html
As we prepare to celebrate Martin Luther King Day, this page from Nobelprize.com has a biography of his life and information about his Nobel Peace Prize that would be interesting to students.

White House: George Washington
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/georgewashington/
Read a biography of our first president, George Washington. Click on a president's name in the list to read biographies of all 44 presidents, including President Barack Obama.

Who Was Ben Franklin Anyway? (National Heritage Academics)
http://americanepic.org/demos/BenFranklin/BenFranklin.html  
A quiz game played in teams to help young students learn about Ben Franklin. Answers are given during short presentations before each test question. Teacher or other facilitator will have to determine which answers are correct or incorrect. See http://americanepic.org/demos/ for a patchwork of other interactive activities and games. Created by American Epic.